DEFENCE
Can WAI
remain
airborne?
LONDON
Westinghouse-Airship Indus
tries (WAI) is optimistic that
its Sentinel 5000 airborne
early warning airship will still
be built despite the project
being cut from the FY 1989
US defence budget. Defence
Secretary Frank Carlucci's
proposed budget labelled
the US Navy's Airship
Programme (Nasp) as "not
affordable".
A US Navy spokesman tells
Flight, "It's dead . . . there are
too many other programmes
that are hurting ... it will be a
miracle if it survives". The
Nasp has certainly had to
compete against many of the
Navy's sacred cows in the
scramble to stay in the FY
1989 budget. Failure to secure
funding for shorter-term goals
like the 600-ship Navy has
undermined the longer-term
projects like Nasp. Never
theless, discussions between
the US Navy and the Defence
Advanced Research Projects
Agency (Darpa) to find alter
native project funding are
under way. Westinghouse-
Airship Industries believes
that funding through Darpa
would help the Sentinel
5000 Operational Develop
ment Model to progress in the
short term.
The company believes
Congress will look favourably
towards continuing the Nasp
funding. WAI spokeswoman
Carey Figgis tells Flight,
"There is genuine concern in
Washington that the tech
nology base in 'lighter than
air' should not be lost. The
threat posed by hypersonic
missiles is not going to go
away . . . airships offer the
only way of getting a 40ft
antenna in the air."
According to Airship Indus
tries' managing director
Michael Hoffman, "If we can
get through the next two years
the future will be a lot more
certain". He did not rule out
the possibility that the Bond
Corporation, which owns 50
per cent of Airship Industries,
might continue funding the
core design team as a private
venture if all else fails.
'"*%•
.ft- •• :-i^»**fa
The Skyship 600 may remain the largest airship for some time to come
SDI test is
successful
WASHINGTON D.C.
All the data from the latest
and most complicated Strate
gic Defence Initiative (SDI)
experiment to track mock
ICBMs has been collated.
The research satellite was
launched from Cape Cana
veral on a Delta rocket to
assess the feasibility of a
space shield which could
distinguish real missiles from
decoys.
The $250 million project
was the first test of Star Wars
technology since September
1986 and has been described
as a success by the Strategic
Defence Initiative Office.
Among other tests, the
satellite tracked 15 targets,
including four mock Soviet
missiles, for a 12-hour period.
In addition to the 100 ground-
based data collection centres,
the satellite itself used six
sensors to amass information.
The satellite's seventh sensor,
an infrared device, failed to
function.
The research material
collected from the experiment
will be critical to the design of
the "kinetic kill vehicle". This
is the SDI system scheduled
for first deployment, and is I
likely to fire metal projectiles
at ICBM warheads.
As well as tracking objects
of different sizes and
compositions, the satellite
collected data on a rocket
launch and on the gases given
off by space vehicles. Informa
tion was also gathered on the
appearance of space objects
when seen against various
backgrounds, since the
Earth's surface creates an
ever-changing glow.
Philippines
produce
gunships
MANILA
The Philippine Air Force
(PAF) is converting five
Sikorsky S-76s into much-
needed helicopter gunships to
assist in the country's battle
against communist insur
gents.
Three of the S-76s were
originally bought as VIP
transports, and the other two
for search and rescue duties.
The conversion work is being
earned out at the PAF's
Villamor Air Base, with assis
tance from Sikorsky.
The PAF has recently re
ceived ten refurbished ex-US
12
Army Bell UH-1M gunships,
and already has ten Sikorsky
AUH-76 gunships in service.
Soviets
upgrade
Jordanian
defences
TEL AVIV
The Soviet Union appears set
to help Jordan improve its air
defence system. According to
Israeli sources, Soviet mili
tary experts have visited
Jordan recently to study
improvements to the existing
air defence system.
The Jordanian Army
currently operates 14 bat
teries of US-made MIM-23B
Improved Hawk missiles, 10
batteries of Soviet SA-8
(Gecko), and 20 launchers for
the Soviet SA-13 (Gopher)
surface-to-air missiles.
It seems that Jordan has
now asked the Soviet Union
to supply its Army with
more SA-13 missiles and
with the improved version
of the shoulder-launched
SA-7 (Grail) surface-to-air
missiles. Jordan is also look
ing at other types.
FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL, 5 March 1988